Leonard Nimoy Leonard Simon Nimoy (; March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor, famed for playing Spock in the ''Star Trek'' franchise for almost 50 years. This includes originating Spock in the original ''Star Trek'' series in 1966, then ...

(March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor who had a career in film and television for seven decades. Nimoy's breakthrough role was his portrayal of

Spock Spock is a Character (arts), fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. He first appeared in the Star Trek: The Original Series, original ''Star Trek'' series serving aboard the starship USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), USS ''Enterprise ...

in ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

.'' Nimoy began his acting career in his early twenties, teaching acting classes in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

and making minor film and television appearances through the 1950s. From 1959 to 1962 he appeared in four episodes of ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings. It ...

,'' as well as playing the title role in ''

Kid Monk Baroni ''Kid Monk Baroni'' is a 1952 American film noir sport film directed by Harold D. Schuster. It is also known as ''Young Paul Baroni'' in the United Kingdom. It features Leonard Nimoy, later in ''Star Trek'' as Spock, in his first lead role in a ...

''. Foreshadowing his fame as a semi-alien, he played Narab, one of three Martian invaders, in the 1952

movie serial A serial film, film serial (or just serial), movie serial, or chapter play, is a motion picture form popular during the first half of the 20th century, consisting of a series of short subjects exhibited in consecutive order at one theater, gene ...

Zombies of the Stratosphere ''Zombies of the Stratosphere'' is a 1952 black-and-white Republic Studios serial directed by Fred C. Brannon, with a screenplay by Ronald Davidson, and special effects by Republic's Lydecker brothers. It was intended to be Republic's second ser ...

''. From 1959 to 1962 he appeared in four episodes of ''

''. His breakthrough character Spock, which he played in ''

'' and its

animated series An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have either ...

and

film adaptations A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dia ...

, made a significant cultural impact and earned Nimoy three

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

nominations. ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' named Spock one of the 50 greatest TV characters. After the original ''Star Trek'' series, Nimoy starred in '' Mission: Impossible'' for two seasons, hosted the documentary series '' In Search of...'', made several well-received stage appearances, and played villain Doctor Kibner in the 1978 remake of ''

Invasion of the Body Snatchers ''Invasion of the Body Snatchers'' is a 1956 American science fiction horror film produced by Walter Wanger, directed by Don Siegel, and starring Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter. The black-and-white film was shot in Superscope and in the film ...

''. In the 1990s, he reprised his role as Spock in a two-part episode of the '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' and the first two Star Trek reboot films, and went on to voice Spock in

Star Trek Online ''Star Trek Online'' is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Cryptic Studios based on the ''Star Trek'' franchise. The game is set in the 25th century, 30 years after the events of '' Star Trek: Nemesis''. ''Sta ...

. In 2016, one year after his death, Nimoy appeared posthumously in the documentary ''

For the Love of Spock ''For the Love of Spock'' is a 2016 American documentary film about actor Leonard Nimoy produced by 455 Films and directed by his son Adam Nimoy, who started it before his father's death on February 27, 2015. The documentary deals with the story ...

.''

Film

Television

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nimoy, Leonard Works by Leonard Nimoy Male actor filmographies Director filmographies American filmographies